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Coyotes-Wolves-Cougars.blogspot.com

Grizzly bears, black bears, wolves, coyotes, cougars/ mountain lions,bobcats, wolverines, lynx, foxes, fishers and martens are the suite of carnivores that originally inhabited North America after the Pleistocene extinctions.
This site invites research, commentary, point/counterpoint on that suite of native animals (predator and prey) that inhabited The Americas circa 1500-at the initial point of European exploration and subsequent colonization.
Landscape ecology, journal accounts of explorers and frontiersmen, genetic evaluations of museum animals, peer reviewed 20th and 21st century research on various aspects of our "Wild America" as well as subjective commentary from expert and layman alike. All of the above being revealed and discussed with the underlying goal of one day seeing our Continent rewilded.....Where big enough swaths of open space exist with connective corridors to other large forest, meadow, mountain, valley, prairie, desert and chaparral wildlands.....Thereby enabling all of our historic fauna, including man, to live in a sustainable and healthy environment. - Blogger Rick

Bison to return to Banff National Park

“Those of us in the Alberta Fish and Game
Association (24,000 members) are adamantly
opposed to this going ahead.”

Dave McDonough, superintendent of Banff
National Park, said they have spent the past
18 months consulting with Albertans and
others who have a stake in the project.

“Most people were very supportive of the
concept,” he said. “We did hear some
concerns and certainly respect those
concerns. They are valid points, with
concerns about how would we prevent
bison from escaping into the province,
for example.

“We are amending our plan to ensure we
take a phased and cautious approach to
ensure that we are comfortable with the
measures we have in place to prevent
bison from escaping outside of the park.”

McDonough said the changes will reflect
some of the concerns when the final plan
is announced in the near future.

Officials with the Fish and Game
Association have been told a federal
announcement to dedicate funding for
the bison reintroduction will be held with
Wild Rose MP Blake Richards at the
Banff Park Museum on Friday afternoon.

McDonough wouldn’t talk about the
event, but the Herald has confirmed
it with several sources.

Richards, whose riding includes Banff,
expressed his support for the project
earlier this month when hedelivered 3,000 postcards to Ottawa
on behalf of Bison Belong — a local
group advocating for the return of
bison to the park.

“I was happy to present Minister
Aglukkaq with almost 3,000 postcards,”
he said at the time. “I know there is a
strong desire from locals, as well as
our domestic and international
visitors, to see bison reintroduced
to Banff National Park.”

Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq, who’s responsible for national parks, receives 3,000 signed postcards delivered by MP Blake Richards on behalf of Bison Belong, a local group advocating for the return of bison to Banff National Park.

Courtesy: Blake Richards

A draft plan for the reintroduction of bison
came out in the fall of 2013. It calls for 600
to 1,000 bison as the target population,
but recommended starting with a five-y
ear pilot project of 30 to 50 bison in the
backcountry around the Panther and
Dormer rivers on the east-central side
of the park.

The proposal received more than 1,000
submissions from Canadians and people
around the world during the public
comment phase.

Proponents of the plan say bringingbison back to Banff will go a long way
to restoring the ecological integrity of
the park, while opponents — including
the provincial government — raised
the concerns about the bison making
their way out of the park boundary.

“History has proven how disastrous
it is to meddle with the environment
and bison,” said Kure, noting the
group’s concerns range from bison
leaving the confines of the park to the
cost of putting in fences to keep them
in the park.

Fences were part of the draft
proposal, but it’s not known how
it will change in the final plan.

Two Massachusetts Eastern Coyotes at their den site

Eastern Wolf in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada

Aldo Leopold--3 quotes from his SAN COUNTY ALMANAC

"We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect."

Aldo Leopold

"A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise."

Aldo Leopold

''To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering."

Wildlife Rendezvous

Like so many conscientious hunters and anglers come to realize, good habitat with our full suite of predators and prey make for healthy and productive living............Teddy Roosevelt depicted at a "WILDLIFE RENDEZVOUS"

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Blog Disclaimer

This is a personal weblog. The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer. In addition, my thoughts and opinions change from time to time…I consider this a necessary consequence of having an open mind. This blog is intended to provide a semi-permanent point in time snapshot and manifestation of my various thoughts and opinions, and as such any thoughts and opinions expressed within out-of-date posts may not be the same, nor even similar, to those I may hold today. All data and information provided on this site is for informational purposes only. Rick Meril and WWW.COYOTES-WOLVES-COUGARS.COM make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis.